Stan Slaton gets kisses from Indy, a pit bull who was strapped with fireworks, lit and abandoned on Fourth of July. Thanks to a series of treatments and surgeries, Indy is now well-enough to go home with a staff member from the Westlake Village Animal Hospital. The man who did this to him has never been caught. (Photo by Michael Owen Baker/L.A. Daily News)

Nearly five months after being strapped with fireworks, badly burned and left for dead in an alleyway, 2-year-old pit bull Indy — so named because he was assaulted on the Fourth of July — is working toward a full recovery.

At the Westlake Village Animal Hospital, the dog walks confidently through the hallways, offering face licks and nuzzles to anyone who will take them.

“I was here when he was brought in, and it was horrible, just horrible,” said Vendy Fris, director of the Barkley Academy, which is affiliated with the veterinary clinic. Fris has been working with Indy on socialization skills and has even started training him to be a therapy dog. “He’s such a lover and a fighter at the same time, though. He never lost trust in people.”

Indy was found July 5 in Winnetka with much of his body badly burned. Based on the injuries, veterinarians believe fireworks were strapped to his legs with duct tape and then lit. As he walked, the burning continued up his legs and on the pads of his feet.

Surveillance video showed a man yanking the wounded pup by his collar out of the bed of a white pickup truck and abandoning him in an alley between Kittridge and Hamlin streets. No arrests have been made, despite $50,000 in reward money being offered for information leading to an arrest.

After Indy was found, he was taken in by Valley Village rescue organization Shelter Transport Animal Rescue Team (START). Organizers there connected with the Westlake Village Animal Hospital, which has worked with shelters and rescue groups.

Dr. Daniel Slaton, a veterinarian with the hospital, said Indy’s recovery has been remarkable. “I don’t think he’ll have any residual issues.”

He said since the burns were some of the worst he’s seen, he reached out to renowned burn surgeon Dr. Richard Grossman of the Grossman Burn Center, who guided Slaton in providing skin grafts for Indy. Ultimately, Indy’s skin didn’t take to the grafts as well as they’d hoped.

“Dogs are so amazing. I think he would have been fine even if we didn’t try the grafts. But he’s doing just amazing now. His muscle tone is so good,” Slaton said. “You can just tell he’s happier.”

Since the attack, Indy has lived at the animal hospital, where he works with therapists, including Fris, on socialization techniques. “He doesn’t like cats — we’ve learned that,” Fris said, laughing.

But he remains friendly and calm around people, always trying to climb into a lap or find a tender moment, a trait Fris hopes will help him become certified to work in hospitals and other therapeutic settings.

“He’ll have a lot of training to do, but I think it would be great for him to be able to help people who have injuries similar to what he went through,” Fris said.

In the next few weeks, Indy will be heading to a new home. A staff member at the center has volunteered to adopt him, and his new caretaker will bring him in each day so that he can continue training.

That’s great news for the group that coordinated his rescue. “He was always such a sweet boy. Some people wrote to us and said maybe we should just put him down,” said Rene Ruston, one of the co-founders of START. “But I could just tell he wanted to live. He’s so smart and eager to please. He loves the attention.”

During his recovery, Indy attracted quite a lot of attention. Ellen DeGeneres, a renowned supporter of animal causes, featured his story on her talk show, and DeGeneres and her wife, actress Portia de Rossi, even visited him.

“He has thousands of fans,” Ruston said. “He gets emails and letters all the time just offering support. It’s pretty incredible.”

START is continuing to collect donations to pay for Indy’s medical bills, which are extensive despite Westlake donating its services. To contribute, visit www.startrescue.org.

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